Here on Chicago’s Far South Side, Method’s soap factory is the first packaged goods manufacturer to achieve LEED Platinum—the highest level possible—thanks to its wind turbine, “solar tracking trees” (solar panels that follow the sun) and the world’s largest rooftop farm, a 75,000-square-foot commercial greenhouse set to produce 500 tons of food annually.

LEED buildings lower operating costs, create a higher return on investment and lead to higher resale and rental rates. One leading manufacturer saw a 33 percent savings on energy costs after changing a building’s design to pursue LEED certification. LEED also contributes to the larger U.S. economy. By the end of 2018, USBGC’s 2015 Economic Impact Study conducted by Booz Allen Hamilton, estimates that green buildings could create 3.3 million U.S. jobs and generate $190 billion in labor earnings.

LEED manufacturing sites are now located in nearly every state. California leads the way with 200 followed by Texas with 99 and Illinois with 66. And that’s significant. Manufacturers consume 30 percent of America’s energy.

Credits in the LEED system are determined with constant and direct input from the building industry. In the newest iteration of the rating system, certain credits were adapted specifically to better reflect the needs of the industrial sector.

Professionals in the industry—from architects to contractors—should see the benefits of LEED and use it in manufacturing structures. Sean Hogan of RDK Architects notes that the manufacturing ”industry has traditionally been considered the main contributor to environmental pollution.” But manufacturers are changing their worldview, he says, and are ”actually doing the right thing.”

Construction teams, even on factories, now understand they can save money and also do their part to preserve the planet’s resources.

Mahesh Ramanujam is Chief Operating Officer of the U.S. Green Building Council.